


Shifter Shifter

by harryhermionerw



Series: Imagine Tony & Bucky [11]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Bucky is a Werewolf, Faked research, Fluff, M/M, Mentions of Jurassic Park because that movie is amazing okay, Tony Stark knows what he wants, i made it all up, imagine prompt fill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-18
Updated: 2018-04-18
Packaged: 2019-04-24 10:40:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,783
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14353797
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/harryhermionerw/pseuds/harryhermionerw
Summary: Tony does his research. It pays off.or;Bucky is a werewolf, and Tony researches how to show his interest to both sides of Bucky.





	Shifter Shifter

**Author's Note:**

  * Translation into Русский available: [Оборотень](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14481963) by [Perfect_Illusion](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Perfect_Illusion/pseuds/Perfect_Illusion)



> Prompt: shifter verse au + wolf!bucky + human!tony. when tony realizes that he is attracted to bucky, he does what he knows best -- research everything about wolf shifters, then tests out the knowledge on bucky. does bucky love the casual touches tony starts handing out everytime he sees him? does tony use submissive body language around the winter soldier? how long does it take tony to realize which combination of words n touches will tease bucky? how long until bucky realizes tony means it?
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> In that glorious hand-wavy universe where everything is wonderful and nothing hurts.

 

“Okay JARVIS. Hit me with it.”

JARVIS pulled up page after page of research, and Tony’s head spun. There was so much information - and misinformation - about wolf shifters. He knew some, of course. He lived with two, but being roommates with a shifter was entirely different from... dating one. Or trying to date one. 

“Okay... cull out the obvious bullshit.”

That still left him with a staggering amount of information to review. Well, he decided. He had become an expert in thermonuclear astrophysics overnight, he could do this too.

“Let’s start from the top.”

 

_ “While most shifters, as a whole, are very tactile, felines shifters prefer to initiate contact except in the case of mates. In contrast, canine shifters are less preferential about who initiates contact, however, initiating extended contact with a canine shifter shows trust and affection for the shifter.” _

_ -Shifter Traits,  _ 1987, University of New York

 

“We’re watching  _ Jurassic Park  _ and that’s that,” Natasha announced. No one was willing to argue with her, and really, there was no argument against  _ Jurassic Park.  _

Popcorn was made, soda cans were opened, candy was passed out. Seats were chosen. Natasha and Clint chose an armchair, as usual. Thor sat in the other. Steve sat on one end of the couch, and Bucky sat on the other. Tony’s usual spot was in the middle, and he sat there, sort of. Instead of sticking to the middle cushion, he leaned over into Bucky’s cushion. “You mind?” He asked quietly.

Bucky looked surprised, but shook his head, gesturing and shrugging at the same time to indicate that he didn't mind. 

Tony curled up, leaning against Bucky’s side casually. 

He could feel four pairs of eyes on him - Thor was too entranced by the movie to pay attention - but he ignored them all to focus on velociraptor kill the poor loading crew leader.

Eventually, everyone's attention returned to the movie, and Bucky relaxed. He put an arm around Tony’s shoulders. 

Smiling to himself, he leaned in even more, just as the unsuspecting Doctors Grant and Sattler saw the dinosaurs for the first time. 

 

_ Repeated contact leads to an exchange of scent that takes over a month to fade. This exchange tells the hindbrain of a shifter that the other person is pack. Pack is the second most important thing to a shifter, where mates and children are the most important.  _

_ -Shifter Traits,  _ 1997, University of New York

 

Tony quickly noticed that Bucky was probably touch-starved, the way he reacted after Tony began his campaign to casually touch Bucky more often. Slinging an arm over Bucky’s shoulder at dinner, idly running his fingers through Bucky’s hair during movie nights, offering hugs, and of course, curling up nearly on top of Bucky on movie nights. Bucky practically melted into him.

And while Tony couldn't smell himself, unless he had accidentally made things go boom in Bruce’s lab (again) he noticed Bucky subtly sniffing him and looking pleased more and more often.

Eventually, occasionally, rarely, Bucky initiated contact, though he looked like Tony might rip away at any second, then looked ecstatic when Tony didn't reject him and in fact encouraged him.

 

_ When a shifter is upset, the quickest way to calm them is by offering a gesture of submission. A traditional gesture is the baring of the neck. The best way to do this is to tilt one’s head to one side, rather than lift one’s head backwards, which is seen more as a dominance challenge. It is suggest that this gesture is only performed by someone who is already considered one of the shifters pack, for the safety of all involved. _

_ - _ Moods of Canine Shifters, 2007, Oxford University

 

Tony was known for making... irrational decisions sometimes. This was definitely one of the more insane ones.

Bucky was teetering on the edge of the abyss that was The Winter Soldier. He only reverted to that mind-set when he was very stressed or  _ very _ angry. 

Right now, he was both. It had been an absolute clusterfuck of a mission. Steve was injured to the point that he was spending the night in Medical. Natasha had broken her leg. Tony had broken two ribs and was severely concussed. Clint’s hearing was temporarily entirely gone, and his fingers were bandaged. Bucky himself was bleeding from three gunshots. 

Tony did the only thing he could think of, which would either get him killed or bring Bucky back from the brink. He offered his neck. 

Bucky froze, staring at Tony. Tony tried to relax and look as unthreatening as possible. 

Bucky came closer, scenting the air. Whatever he smelled obviously pleased him because he no longer looked like he was going to go on a murder-spree. He came closer to sniff Tony’s neck.

Not daring to move, Tony concentrated on staying relaxed and open.

Bucky relaxed entirely, then scrambled backwards. “What the hell, Tony?”

Ah, there he was. Tony stood upright. “You were about to snap, Buck-a-roo.”

“I could have killed you!”

“You wouldn't have. I trust you.”

Nonplussed, Bucky stared at Tony. 

“What?”

Tony shrugged. “I trust you.” There wasn't much else to say.

“Why?”

“You make great grilled cheese. You took a bullet for me without thinking. Sometimes things are simple.”

Bucky clearly didn't know what to say.

Tony carefully put an arm around Bucky’s waist. His rib throbbed. “Let's go check on Spangles, then our resident spies, okay?”

 

_ Seeing a shifter in their shifted form during a full moon is a sign of trust from the shifter. They are helpless to the shift, and while they are certainly not helpless, since they are unable to shift back they prefer to stay alone or with other shifters. Seeing a shifter at any other time is much more common.  _

Shifting Shifters, 2010, University of New Mexico

 

Everyone had seen Bucky’s shifted form. It had been a fantastic weapon during battles, and occasionally Bucky preferred to curl up in shifted form, and liked being petted. 

But only Steve and the Howling Commandos had ever seen him during the full moon. Not even HYDRA had seen him in shifted form, since they preferred to freeze him during the full moon instead of letting a wolf run wild. And The Asset didn't remember he was a shifter.

“Sir?”

Tony looked up from his project. “Yeah J?”

JARVIS hesitated. “Sergeant Barnes is outside your door.”

Startled, Tony looked reflexively at his workshop door. It was in blackout mode, so he couldn't see out, but he didn't doubt JARVIS. “But- isn't it the full moon?” He had every moon marked in his calendar, and had JARVIS remind him every month. 

“Yes, Sir. Sergeant Barnes is in wolf form.”

Confused now, and a little worried, Tony pushed away from his work table. “End the blackout. Is he okay? Where’s Steve?”

“Captain Rogers is on the couch in the common room, watching cooking shows. Sergeant Barnes is fine.” The blackout ended, leaving clear glass.

Bucky was sitting at the door, looking at Tony with sad puppy dog eyes, begging to come in. 

His eyebrows creasing, Tony opened the door. Bucky shot in, and went straight for the couch. He laid down, then thumped his tail several times, as if in invitation. 

“Bucky?”

The wolf huffed, and pointedly shuffled over to make more room. 

Feeling a little out of sorts, Tony sat. “What's going on?”

In answer, Bucky laid his head on Tony’s lap and promptly fell asleep. 

 

The next morning, Bucky was back to being human-shaped. He was also very naked. Tony stretched, feeling his bones pop back into place, and studiously avoided looking at anything but Bucky’s face.

“So.”

Bucky flushed. “Sorry,” he mumbled, looking down at his lap.

Cocking his head, Tony furrowed his brow. “For what?”

“For imposing on you.” Bucky seemed oblivious to the fact that he was naked - most shifters didn't care one way or another. 

Rolling his eyes, Tony wondered why he liked such an idiot. “You weren't imposing. I was just wondering-” He paused. “You’ve never been here before on a full moon. You hang out with Steve,” he finished lamely.

Bucky shrugged. “I hate cooking shows.”

Tony laughed. “So that's the only reason you came down here?” 

Looking uncharacteristically soft and open, Bucky shook his head. “I just wanted to be around you, I guess. You're good people. I-” He stopped for a second. “I trust you, you know?”

Tony’s stomach flipped over. “Oh.”

Looking a little miserable, Bucky started to stand. “Sorry I'll just go.”

Tony’s hand was clamped around Bucky’s wrist before his brain caught up with his actions. “Wait, no.”

Looking back, Bucky looked hopeful.

“I-” He let go of Bucky’s hand to twist his together. “Doyouwanttogoonadate?”

Bucky slowly sounded out the sentence before brightening. “Really? With  _ me? _ ”

“Of course with you!”

Sitting back down, Bucky grinned. “You don't mind that I get furry or murder-y?”

Shaking his head, Tony felt less like he was going to puke and more like he was going to float away. “Tomorrow night, since tonight is still the full moon? Pizza?”

“It's a date.”

 

_ Shifter’s mating habits are more similar to their shifted forms than not. For example, wolves tend to mate for life. _

Reproduction Habits of Shifters, 1999, Trinity College

 

**Two Years, One Day Later**

 

It was their anniversary. Bucky had asked if he could plan it, and Tony had agreed, willing to be surprised.

They were out at the same pizza place that they had come to for their first date. It was sentimental and wonderful.

Tony had already given Bucky his gift, a gift card to the Manhattan Fruit Exchange and a basketful of specialty candies that he was fond of. Well, the rest of the gift would be later, in bed.

Bucky pulled out his gift. It was wrapped in Iron Man wrapping paper.

Tearing into it, he found another box with a different type of Iron Man wrapping paper. And again, and again, until-

He looked up at Bucky, barely able to breathe. “Is this?”

“Open it and find out,” Bucky suggested, but his face was filled with nerves.

Tony did. It was exactly what he thought.

Bucky drew his attention by going down on one knee. “You’re the one who went out of their way to learn about shifters, and make me feel comfortable in this century. You’re my home, and my mate. Will you make it official?”

Tony couldn't speak for a second, so he nodded enthusiastically and pushed the box at Bucky. “Put it on me, honey.”

Bucky did, and the whole restaurant burst into cheers, startling both of them.

Smiling, Tony kissed Bucky.

“I love you,” he said against Bucky’s lips.

“I love you, too.”


End file.
